Let's Know Things

This week, we talk about nuclear weapons and how they’re often more useful as threats and geopolitical chess pieces than as actual munitions we intend to use.We also discuss Korean War history, the new offensive methods the world’s governments (and non-governmental entities) are beginning to use, and how North Korea is upsetting a very precarious balance. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

This week we talk about the burgeoning hands-free audio movement, the technologies that are depending on and amplifying this progression, and why it’s being promoted as a next-generation UI.We also touch on podcasting technology, Nintendo Rumble Paks, and digital privacy. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode we talk about magic that works: forces that grant us additional powers here in the real world.We also touch on paganism, social constructionism, how to take down New York. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode, we talk about great big events, the interconnectedness of everything, and why it’s so difficult for us to perceive outsized happenings — or in some cases even believe they exist.We also take a look at cyanobacteria, riff on Mount Tambora, and learn the amazing name of a proto-bicycle. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

This week, we talk about population, and why we drown in think pieces every time it goes up or down worldwide or in a given locale.We also address why it is that when we talk about population, we’re usually not just talking about population. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

On this week’s episode, we talk about words: their use, overuse, the watering-down of their meaning over time, and how they eventually acquire definition-baggage.We also talk a bit about swearing and Pig Latin. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

On today’s episode, we talk about the increasing number of ways the real world and the online world overlap, and what that means for how we exist and interact in these spaces. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of Let’s Know Things, we talk about how perception can influence our decisions, whether we’re choosing a wine or a presidential candidate.We’ll also talk about how negative biases about some groups can color our impressions of potentially beneficial advances, and discuss how this knowledge might allow us to make better decisions for ourselves. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

On this week’s episode of Let’s Know Things, we touch on the idea of shunning, then deep-dive into empiricism versus faith, trust and journalism, and how politicians are like magicians.We also discuss why diluting the influence of journalism and journalists is a wonderful short-term tactic, but potentially very harmful in the long-term. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

On today’s episode we discuss intelligence, and in particular the types of intelligence we find outside of our own species.We’ll also address the questions we’ll need to answer as we learn more about these non-human minds, and how our interactions with them might change our perception of society. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe